President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has urged all government agencies to keep their Christmas and year-end celebrations modest and meaningful, in solidarity with Filipinos still recovering from recent disasters.

Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said Wednesday that the reminder, issued jointly with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), aims to promote empathy and restraint as the country enters the holiday season.

“Kasunod ng mga sakuna sa bansa —paalala ni Pangulong Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. at ng DBM sa ahensya ng pamahalaan— gawing simple ang pagdiriwang ng holiday season (Following the recent disasters in the country, President Marcos Jr. and the DBM remind government agencies to keep their holiday celebrations modest),” Castro said in a Palace briefing.

She said the guidance reflects the administration’s concern for communities struck by a string of calamities, including the recent earthquakes in the Visayas and Mindanao and typhoons that battered several provinces.

“Mahalaga ang pagdiriwang ng Pasko na may pag-aalala sa kapwa nating patuloy na nagsisimulang muli dulot ng maraming kalamidad na tumama sa bansa (It’s important to celebrate Christmas with thoughtfulness for those still recovering from the many calamities that hit the country),” Castro added.

The reminder comes as Typhoon Tino (international name Kalmaegi), the 20th tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines this year, lashed parts of Visayas and Mindanao, unleashing floods, landslides, and displacing thousands of families. (PNA)